The grassroots organization Swifties for Kamala, a coalition of Taylor Swift fans backing Vice President Kamala Harris in her presidential bid, launched its campaign on Tuesday night, raising more than $125,000 within just a few hours.
The kickoff event, which drew over 27,000 registrants, featured notable speakers including Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), and Ed Markey (D-Mass.), as well as renowned singer Carole King. King concluded her speech with a performance of a few lines from Swift’s hit song “Shake It Off,” encouraging attendees to participate in door-knocking efforts.
During the two-hour virtual event, a total of 4,384 donors contributed $128,000. By Wednesday morning, an additional $10,000 had been raised.
Emerald Medrano, a co-founder of Swifties for Kamala, shared her personal journey that led to the formation of the group. Medrano described the movement’s inception as a response to feelings of anxiety and a desire to be more proactive. “It was a time when all my fears about our country and our democracy just built up, and I knew I had to speak now,” Medrano said. “So I did. I sent out a tweet urging our community to organize this election and create a blue wave filled with hand hearts and friendship bracelets. And to my surprise, I got thousands and thousands of overwhelming support.”
In addition to King’s endorsement of canvassing, the group encouraged participants to take several actions. These included checking and updating their voter registration, helping Americans abroad with voting plans, discussing politics with neighbors, and supporting the new “in my voting era” merchandise.
The event was peppered with references to Swift’s lyrics, adding a playful and motivational tone. Senator Warren highlighted the urgency of the upcoming election, saying, “We’ve got 70 days until the election, and I’m just going to be blunt, it is going to be a tough fight ahead. We have a lot to do, and dang, there are only 24 hours in a day, or 144 ‘All Too Well’ 10-minute versions. But here’s the thing, just like you’ve done every time before, we will push this boulder up the hill and we will win in November.”
Senator Gillibrand shared humorous references crafted by her staff, such as “we can’t stop, won’t stop voting, so shake it off,” and “Kamala is saying, ‘look what you made me do.’”
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Senator Markey delivered a particularly reference-rich speech, taking aim at former President Donald Trump. “Donald Trump will stare directly in the sun, but never in the mirror,” Markey said. “So we have our work ahead of us to make sure we defeat this antihero wannabe, or as I like to call him, Mr. Casually Cruel, Mr. Everything Revolves Around You. In the words of Taylor Swift, I never trust a narcissist, and this narcissist-in-chief clearly doesn’t know enough about karma, or what I like to call the infinite organizing power of the Swifties on this Zoom call. He’s too busy soliciting billion-dollar bribes from his big oil buddies. But karma is a Swiftie voter.”
The launch of Swifties for Kamala comes in the wake of Harris’s selection of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D) as her running mate. Walz, an outspoken member of the Swiftie fandom, has further energized the group’s supporters.
The formation of Swifties for Kamala follows months of speculation linking Swift to the 2024 election. Earlier this year, some right-wing commentators propagated a conspiracy theory suggesting that Swift was a “Pentagon asset” influencing the election.
While Swift has consistently encouraged her fans to register to vote and has expressed support for various Democratic candidates and policies, she has not explicitly endorsed a candidate for the 2024 election. Recently, Trump humorously accepted a mock endorsement from Swift, which included images of “Swifties for Trump”—mostly generated by artificial intelligence.
As Swifties for Kamala gains momentum, the coalition’s enthusiasm reflects a growing trend of celebrity-driven political engagement, blending fandom culture with grassroots activism.
